Projectile



M. TODlSCO.

PROJECTILE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR-25,1918- Patented Dec. 23,1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

M. TODISCO.

PROJECTILE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR- 25. I918.

Patented Dec. 23, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- FFC.

MICHAEL TODISCO, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

PBOJECTILE.

Application filed March 25, 1918.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that 1, MICHAEL Toorsoo, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings, and State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Projectiles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates generally to improvements in explosive projectiles and particularly to the construction and assembly of the parts of the projectile which are scattered by the bursting charge, and to a fuse device for controlling the manner and time of firing the bursting charge. The principal objects of the invention are to provide, in. such a projectile, a large number of separable fragments of novel construction, to provide a simple and easily adjusted time fuse, and to construct the projectile so that it may be most effective when exploded by impact.

An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is an elevation;

Fig. 2 is a central vertical section;

Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; and

Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are elevations of individual parts of the projectile which will be later referred to.

Referring to the drawings and particularly to Fig. 2, the projectile is provided with a base 10 and a cap 11 which may be fastened together by suitable means such as bolts 12. The parts of the projectile which are scattered by the explosion of the bursting charge are in the form of segments 13 of circular disks and are adapted to be assembled about a light inner casing 14 (see Fig. 5) and held in place both by pressure between the base 10 and cap 11 and by the bolts 12 which pass through holes formed by cooperating semi-circular recesses 15 in the abutting edges of the segments 13, as shown in Fig. 3. Preferably four bolts 12 are provided and the disks divided into four segments. These segments preferably have sharpened or beveled edges 16 in order that they may have a cutting action upon striking'wire or the like, thus making them particularly efiective against air craft or wire entanglements.

A central tube 17 is provided to contain the fuse, the tube being shown in section in Fig. 2 and in elevation in Fig. 4:. The

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 23, 1919.

Serial No. 224,420.

lower end of the tube may be externally threaded as at 18 and screwed into an internally threaded bore 19 in the base 10. The cap 11 may be screwed onto the tube 17 by internal threads 20 in the cap and external threads 21 upon the upper end of the tube. Arranged to slide within the tube 17 is a tube 22 which controls the action of the time fuse. In practice this tube will have preferably a close sliding fit with the interior of the tube 17 but for clearness in the drawings an appreciable clearance space is shown. The tube 22 is provided with an internally threaded nut 23 set into its upper end in any suitable manner and adapted to be moved upon a screw 24. The tube 22 is held from rotation by laterally extending pins 25 sliding in grooves 26 formed in the tube 17 and extending from a point below the threads 21 to the end of the tube.

A fuse tube 27 containing a time fuse 28 is placed within the controlling tube 22 in a suitable manner as by screwing into the lower end of the outer tube 17. The fuse maintains a fixed relation with the outer tube 17. In the tube 17 there is provided a slot 29 and a corresponding slot 30 in the fuse tube which is adapted to register therewith but to be separated therefrom by the sliding tube 22. The sliding tube 22 is provided with a hole 31 so arranged with reference to the two slots 29 and 30 that it will register therewith and serve to connect the fuse 28 with the bursting charge 32 at any desired point along slots 29 and 30.

It will now be apparent that the time of firing the bursting charge 32 will be controlled by the position of the tube 22 with relation to the fuse 28. For instance with the parts in the position shown inthe drawings the ignition of the bursting charge will take place as soon as the combustion of the fuse has reached the slot in the fuse tube or substantially half the length of the fuse, at which point the fuse tube is in communication with the bursting charge. If the tube 22 is moved upwardly communication will not be established between the fuse and the bursting charge until the fuse has burned to a point opposite the hole 31. Thus by appropriate positioning of the sliding tube 22 the time of the bursting 0f the shell may be accurately controlled.

A suitable nose piece 33 is provided for the projectile and may be suitably attached to the cap 11 as by threading it thereon.

Suitable means are provided for conveniently actuating the sliding tube 22 in order that the fuse may be accurately set. Such means are provided by the screw 24: which passes through the end of the nose 33 and carries a nut 3& on the outside. This nut is adapted to be engaged by a fuse setting cap 35 which as shown in Fig. l fits over the nose and is held in place by inturned lugs 36 engaging an annular groove 37 in the base of the nose piece. The rotation of the fuse setting cap 35 will rotate the screw 9A and move the controlling tube a predetermined distance depending upon the pitch of the screw 24. The movement of the fuse 22 upon a single revolution of the setting cap 35, and the speed of burning of the fuse having been ascertained an appropriate scale with any desired unit of measurement may be placed upon the rim of the cap 11 or upon the lower edge of the fuse setting cap 35 which will show to what extent the fuse cap must be turned to set the fuse for any given range.

It is desired that the projectile be adapted to burst upon impact as well as through the operation of the time fuse and for this purpose suitable means are provided. Herein, the nose piece is weakened, as by an annular groove 38, and adetonator cap 39 is placed between a downwardly projecting portion 40 of the nose and the cap piece 11. A channel 41 leads from the detonato'r cap 39 to the bursting charge 32. This channel may be filled with an explosive and under the circumstances referred to, it may be filled with a slow burning charge in the nature of a time fuse.

The chamber formed within the nose cap may be filled with an explosive charge 42 which may be ignited by the detonator cap 39.

When explosive projectiles of the general class herein referred to are used with most effectiveness against enemy troops they should preferably burst slightly above the ground and often it is difiicult to locate the bursting position accurately with the time fuse. With the construction herein shown it is possible to disregard the time fuse and still effect the bursting of the projectile at the proper distance above the ground. If for instance the nose is provided with an explosive and the projectile aimed to strike near the point where it is desired to explode the charge 32, the impact will ignite the charge 4-2, blow off the nose piece andL thus tend to raise the body of the projectile above the ground before the bursting charge is ignited. The approximate distance of the shell above the ground when the bursting charge is ignited can be determined by the time required for burning the fuse within the bore 41.

If the projectile is to be used with fixed It is to be understood that the several features of this invention need not necessarily be combined but that their individual advantages may be obtained by their separate use in any appropriate projectile. Moreover the invention may be variously modified and embodied within the scope of the subjoined claims.

I claim as my invention 1. In a projectile the combination of a base, a plurality of segmented disks mounted upon said base and providing a central chamber for a bursting charge, a. cap piece, bolts attached to said cap piece and passing through recesses formed in the abutting edges of the segmental disks, and a fuse to control the ignition of the bursting charge.

2. An explosive projectile formed with a chamber for a bursting charge, a fuse, a movable tube surrounding said fuse and provided with an opening between the fuse and the bursting charge, a bolt and nut connecting said movable tube with a fixed part of said projectile and adapted by relative rotation to vary the position of said opening and thereby vary the time of ignition of the bursting charge.

3. An explosive projectile formed with a. cylindrical chamber for a bursting charge, a hollow member located axially of said chamber and provided with a longitudinally extending slot, a sliding member within said hollow member provided with an opening registering with said slot, a fuse within said sliding member, a nut fast to said sliding member, a bolt engaging said nut, and means to rotate said bolt and move said member.

4. An explosive projectile formed with a cylindrical chamber for a bursting charge, a hollow *tube located axially of said chamber and provided with a longitudinally ex tending slot, a sliding tube within said hollow tube provided with an opening registering with said slot, guiding means to prevent relative rotation of said tubes, fuse within said sliding tube, and means to move said sliding tube to vary the position of said opening along said slot.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification this 6th day of March, 1918.

MICHAEL ToDIsoo. 

